Machete Maidens Unleashed DVD (MPI)

Posted on May 9, 2011 by JJ Bona
Machete Maidens Unleashed DVD (MPI)

Machete Maidens Unleashed DVD (MPI)

RELEASE DATE: July 26, 2011

Karate-kickin’ midgets! Paper-mache monsters! Busty babes with blades! Filipino genre films of the ’70s and ’80s had it all.

Boasting cheap labour, exotic scenery and non-existent health and safety regulations, the Philippines was a dreamland for exploitation filmmakers whose renegade productions were soon engulfing drive-in screens around the globe like a tidal schlock-wave!

At last, the all-too-often overlooked world of drive-in filler from Manila gets the Mark Hartley (NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD) treatment in Machete Maidens Unleashed!. This is the ultimate insiders’ account of a faraway backlot where stunt men came cheap, plot was obsolete and the make-up guy was packin’ heat!

Machete Maidens Unleashed! features interviews with cult movie icons Roger Corman, Joe Dante, John Landis, Sid Haig, Eddie Romero and a large assembly of cast, crew and critics, each with a jaw-dropping story to tell about filmmaking with no budget, no scruples, no boundaries and – more often than not – no clothes.

Check out the trailer here.

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Other Notable Titles |

Van Damme as villain in Expendables 2?

Posted on May 9, 2011 by JJ Bona
Jean-Claude Van Damme

Jean-Claude Van Damme

Twitch reports: Sheldon Lettich – the writer of both Bloodsport and Rambo III and a long time associate of Van Damme – has told JCVD fan site VanDammeFan.net that the Belgian star has accepted a role in The Expendables 2 and that he will be playing one of the principal villains. Which could very easily mean that we will see Van Damme squaring off head to head with Sylvester Stallone for the first time in their careers. More details here.

Additional Expendable 2 info.

Posted in News |

Ong-Bak 2: The Beginning (2008) Review

Posted on May 9, 2011 by JJ Hatfield
"Ong-Bak 2" US Theatrical Poster

"Ong-Bak 2" US Theatrical Poster

Director: Tony Jaa, Panna Rittikrai
Cast: Tony Jaa, Nirut Sirichanya, Sorapong Chatree, Sarunyoo Wongkrachang, Santisuk Promsiri, Primorata Dejudom, Natdanai Kongthong, Prarinya Karmkeaw, Patthama Panthong, Petchtai Wongkamlao, Dan Chupong, Tim Man
Running Time: 92 min.

By JJ Hatfield

Five hundred ninety years ago in a place known as Siam struggle for power was tearing the country apart. Violence of immense proportions seized the land, from both royalty and bandits. The citizens were mostly poverty stricken and defenseless however that did not stop the slaughter of many, many thousands. In the Buddhist epoch calendar it is the year 1974. King Rama II of Ayutthaya created a powerful Royal Court in efforts to expand the kingdom and seized Sukhothal. When enough soldiers were gathered they battered and hacked the way to the east and laid siege to the City of Angels (Bangkok) for eight long months.

Ayutthaya was a Siamese kingdom that was in power from 1351 until 1767. Ayutthaya was known as a city that welcomed most foreigners and traders including Vietnamese (Annamese), Chinese, Korea (now)Japanese, Indians, Persians and other foreigners, even letting them establish whole villages around the city walls. The Sukhothal, dynasty lasted from 1238 – 1438. This information is very much real. The period piece is on the mark with the rulers and events in general. Of course Teean’s story is not a part of history but someone did their homework so that the story fit into what we do know about the period.

From a rainy mist comes the sound of a horse breathing hard. The rider is being pursued by a number of enemies. Realizing all is lost he does what he can for the young boy riding with him and leaves him to care for himself. Suddenly the soldier runs into a trap and is killed in a flurry of arrows. Then the “Ong Bak” logo comes on and the movie rarely slows down again.

The young boy is Teean, played by Nutdanai Kongtong. His father is one of four generals in charge of keeping the peace in the area in a time of violent turmoil. Teean has always wanted to be a great warrior like his father. However his father and mother do not want him to be involved with fighting in any way, hoping to keep him safe and separate from soldiers and enemies. His father refuses to teach him how to fight instead sheltering him in a village known for the arts, music and dancing. The general is betrayed and his household killed, simultaneously enraging and demoralizing him. Teean is thrown into a savagely different world after being torn from his parents and all he has ever known. The situation goes from very bad to very much worse when he is captured by slave merchants. He doesn’t even know where he is or how to fight but he refuses to just accept his fate quietly. That is the kind of spirit that might allow him to survive in a world seemingly full of only evil where anything could be bought including humans.

By coincidence Teean is at the same market as a group of pirates suddenly take over. When they are through with the village the Chief of the Pha Peek Krut Pirates ChurNung (Sorapong Chatree) allows Teean to come with them and they heal his wounds. He is given a choice of staying there and learning the martial arts and become one of them, or he can go where ever he wants.

Teean wanders through the village. Markets and, people practicing every conceivable kind of school or form of martial arts or performing what seems more like stunts. Teean is all eyes as nearly magical things happen right in front of him. This is very different from the village with dancing and healing! People sparring with each other, flipping and spinning, some using different kinds of swords. To Teean this is the perfect place to be. He stays and learns dozens of types of martial arts fighting techniques as well as some of the other’s specialties including slight of hand and explosives.

Over the years he has never forgotten what happened to his parents, nor has revenge left his heart. He burns for vengeance and restoring the family name. While avenging them is always in his mind he begins to learn about the weapons and fighting in a more spiritual manner. That may sound odd, spiritual used with a word of weapons but many cultures felt certain weapons were endowed with special powers. The spiritual Father (Cheang) to the village tells Teean that any weapon he masters will, make him the best of the best. As Teean grows up so improve his skills.

No doubt no one will win awards for acting but everyone is good enough to make it work. Tony is probably the best actor in the film with the possible exception of Nutdanai Kongtong in small scenes. Especially after he is with Chur Nung in the village when Teean is forced to make choices and deal with incredible burdens Tony shows he has grown as an actor.

Watching Teean train is a real treat. By the end of this part of the movie Tony has proved he can do just about anything anyone else can and maybe a little better. He is eloquence in motion and the viewer is never cheated by slipping the same exact scenes as some movie do. The fighting can be beautiful but it is also bloody and deadly.

One thing I think people forget is that Panna wrote this story, with input from Tony. Panna has a spiritual element in many if not most of his movies. Sometimes it is represented through Buddhism and pacifism. However there is usually a large helping of spirit, what some would call, supernatural or magical elements. He wanted to express that early but it was usually something like zombies, or strange natives, weird creatures. In other words as much as he could afford and the audience seemed to like it enough for it to be an oft used part of a script. Ong Bak 2 is no exception. Panna and Tony expected the audience to make the connections without beating the viewer over the head with one of those skull shattering elbow strikes.

The fight cinematography is superb! Panna came up with the wild ideas and Tony and crew worked until they made it happen. Panna does know what looks good on film and I think Tony has the same quality. However not even Jet Li could pull off acting/screenplay/director/fight choreography etc. Tony took on an extreme amount of responsibility for several major aspects of the film.

A most beautiful, powerful “dance” choreography is contained in this film. While we have seen traditional Thai dancing with women this dance is performed by Tony, and what a dance! It really held my attention, an amazing blend of strength and sublety. There is also a “Drunken Tony” scene which is not to be missed!

The viewer is treated to a variety of very different moves from Tony. Chinese Kung Fu, Judo,Samurai, Ninja ?,Muay Thai and even a new form of Muay Thai Tony put together himself, a Muay Thai form with dance type movements included. Watching Tony doing Snake and Crane was a blast! I think given time there is not much Tony cannot do, if that is what he chooses. He is truly a joy to watch! It’s incredible how many different forms and styles he does and does very well.

Not to mention his real life Muay Thai boxing training with a Master who is also a stunt man. Part of the time Jaa was supposed to be *missing* he was frantically running around learning to sharpen (no pun intended unless you laughed) his skills in everything besides Muay Thai boxing. He seems to take his training and testing very seriously and spars with so many different styles and forms it’s impossible to catch them all because Tony is so damn fast.

Not only do the fights involve some very high quality hand to hand there are plenty of weapons to use and they are used! I have never seen anyone use so many different weapons! He would just pick up something and turn it into a tool, a weapon in his hands. Knives, daggers, swords, plus many more including a three section staff are used. Tony deliberately changes styles of fighting when faced with an opponent’s style, and uses, that form. All of the fighting looks fresh and new which is a tribute to Panna and Tony. They never use the same shot the same way. And of course kudos to the men and women? who are the stunt team. Without them Tony would have no one to fight.

The actual fight/stunt editing is consistent enough to keep the story flowing. There are a few flashbacks for the back story but it works well enough.

The production values are higher than in either of Jaa’s big movies Ong Bak and Tom Yum Goong. I was impressed with the over all realistic feeling of the sets, from the primitive villages to the gauche finery of the royals. Roads and paths are dusty or muddy, depending on the season.

The viewer sees a wide variety of objects that were probably in use at the time on a daily basis. Costumes were done well both for royalty and peasants. There were a lot of extras involved to clothe as well. Most of the males, excluding royals seemed to be wearing a loincloth and tattoos/paint. It could be historic and accurate but not something I want to see much more. The tattoos may denote rank in the army, or property of, or spells to make them rich. I have not been able to find out anything for certain other than they were in the movie.

Jaa is nimble and agile sailing effortlessly through the air then suddenly deadly as he nails his opponent with two knees to the chest. There is an amazing stunt (yes it is a stunt and it was very dangerous) with Tony running around on top of a herd of elephants moving pretty damn fast. He is nearly as nuts as Panna.

Tony does have good ideas about story lines but there is the contract he must adhere to and no one around here has seen a copy of that. I think he also has a good eye and someday may make a great director. But not even Tony can do everything at the same time and devote 110% to the project.

The number one problem with this film was that it was only half. Ong Bak 2 and 3 were one complete film. If it had been left as one film it would not have seemed so lopsided as well as 3. The studio decided to split the movie. Big mistake, for the story and the viewer but it made more money that way so screw the story.

Panna wrote the story and co – directed with Jaa. So it wasn’t as if Tony was all by himself in the film’s creation. It really f$cked up the movie to have it split. Virtually all the filming for Ong Bak ”3“ was in the can but the studio wanted more money so they hacked it into two and had to add more flash backs and back story.

There were problems that were certainly not Jaa’s fault including having to cut the temple scene (Preah Vihear) temple very short, or edit it out of the film due to tensions between Cambodia and Thailand as it is close to the border of Cambodia. It wasn’t safe.

So much negative press and PR and really, really bizarre rumors about Jaa and the film. Jaa disappeared, died, was hanging out in a cave “meditating”, in Cambodia to learn the black arts and even more bizarre rumors. To the best of my knowledge Jaa and/or representatives had to discuss the use of the temple close to the border. In some newer versions of the film the scenes were cut entirely or truncated. The same with the black arts. Someone needed to have an idea of how to represent emotions and feelings as becoming tangible. Was Tony ever there? Does it matter? With all this bizarro shit supposedly happening not one person got off a pic? Not even in Thailand are things such that no one would talk about this stuff. A substantial portion of claims are probably fiction but there is often something real, that sets someone off and the story goes on.

Even though his character was on screen only a short time I like the Crow Demon character, played by Dan Chupong. Some places list him as un-credited but he is credited in the Thai only movie as well as the version with subtitles.

The viewer must pay attention between the action because there are things that connect the three Ong Bak movies. If you have not seen Ong Bak 2 do not bother to see Ong Bak 3 because you won’t understand anything. There are still unanswered questions, most of them will be answered by 3 and then you see the connections. Also remember reincarnation is an accepted fact by Buddhists. Things you do in previous lives really does effect your path in this life or the next and so forth. If you can’t accept the characters’ whole hearted belief, you won’t understand the film and you won’t like it. In fact rigid in the box types don’t watch this. Without setting aside different beliefs (if you have them) this movie is beyond you. Just turn off the sound and watch the action.

Ong Bak 3 is much more in the spiritual realm than OB2, the way they cut the film in half. It too is a great movie but very different than what the viewer sees in OB2.

Remember that, Ong Bak was released in 2003, and Ong Bak 2 in 2008. Between the two Tony Jaa made Tom Yum Goong, a fantastic film but not related in any way to Ong Bak. Actually there are a couple of connections I thought you could make a case for but no one else has stated that so it’s simply my opinion. It doesn’t matter because Ong Bak 2 is a totally different story, even from the first film. Watch “2“, more than once before going on to “3“ That’s all I can say without spoilers.

Please forgive any errors I may have in spellings of names or other information. The more research I did the more confusing the matter became. There are multiple spellings and pronunciations for nearly every region and person. Since history is written at first by only the winners it can become exceedingly difficult to sort it all out.

Ayutthaya was officially known as Siam, however people of Ayutthaya called themselves Tai, from the Kingdom of, Krung Tai or ‘the Kingdom of the Tais. This is not confirmed.

JJ Hatfield’s Rating: 9.5/10

By Ningen

Aspiring to be a prequel to the original Tony Jaa action-adventure flick, Ong Bak 2 decides to go back six hundred years before the setting in Ong Bak 1. In OB2, Jaa plays Tien, the son of a village chief trying to stand up against the imperialistic Evil Overlord, er, Rajasena. Rajasena killed Tien’s parents and wiped out his village when Tien was a child. Tien survived by seeking refuge with a group of bandits versed in the martial arts. Tien then seeks the bandits’ training, in order to get his revenge on Rajasena.

While the first Ong Bak was a semi-tribute to Jackie Chan movies and a basic man-on-the-run film, the director of the sequel apparently decided he needed to go Hollywood with this one. So in Ong Bak 2, you have to endure pointless Bay-style slow-mo pans combined with pseudo-Enya music, unnecessary and frequent flashbacks which don’t really add anything new to the main story, a childhood friend who becomes a love interest to Tien for no reason, and a tenuous and disappointing connection to the original film, a la George Lucas with Star Wars I-III. So what should be a fast-paced action movie ends up feeling a lot longer than its 90 minute running time would suggest.

And while there are fight scenes, they don’t very show up often until the end of the movie. Plus, by then, the fights get really boring really fast. The choreography itself is a bi-polar mix of regular martial arts and wannabe-MMA bloodbaths consisting of groups of thugs over-powering Tien in numbers, more than skill.

Meanwhile, the story’s a pain in the ass, since it gets my hopes up, and then wastes my time with a Mondo Cane-style tour of Thailand which probably does more to hurt the peninsula’s image than help any tourist bureaus. Yeah, I know Ong Bak 2 takes place in a different century, but I don’t think scenes of the locals eating animal eyeballs will encourage casual viewers to order Thai food any time soon. And I was bored enough with the pointless dance numbers in Flying Daggers. So I don’t need them being used in place of character development and tension in this film. Plus, I can experience that form of performance art for free in a National Geographic documentary. So why do I want to pay to sit through it in an action movie?

But I think what really pisses me off is the way the movie goads me into believing that Tien can and will save the day. I won’t mention any spoilers, but after the build-up, the plot suddenly throws in some cheap twists near the end. These sudden developments don’t come off surprising as much as forced. And by the time you’re done with the story, you’ll wonder if you reached one of those “alternate” endings in a video game you were supposed to play “correctly” to get to the real conclusion. But either way, with Ong’s Bak 2 paper-thin writing and uninspired fights, you’ll lose.

Ningen’s Rating: “Elephant-fu” 8/10; Regular fights 6.5/10; Story 4/10; Final score 5.5/10

By Kioko

My last review of Tony Jaa’s Tom Yum Goong rated a 10/10.

The title of the best martial artist on film has been handed over to Tony Jaa.

Everything I said then about Jaa rings even more true NOW with his latest release of Ong Bak 2. This is his directorial debut and you can see such a difference with his last films and this one. Specifically, the other films had an observant, tripod, watch-the-stunts-on-film feel to it. Much like all of Jackie Chan’s films. In Ong Bak 2, Jaa shows style, visuals, flashbacks, themes, he shows it all. Everything you see on the screen has a purpose.

The story has a similar theme, young boy trained in the martial arts. But this film adds a Soap opera feel to it, keeping you involved in the story as it is revealed to you parts at a time. And involves the history and motivations of not just the main actor, but the supporting actors and villains as well. And it doesn’t drag.

There is no one who can touch Jaa. The actions is SPECTACULAR! Of 90 minutes. There is 30 minutes story, 60 minutes action. He shows the martial arts on film in a way not seen since Chang Cheh and Shaw Brothers film of the 70s. There is even a 11-second one take fight scene. Over 10 different weapons, 8 different styles you can see he poured his heart into this one. Grouping a few scenes together, I’d even say it is borderline X-Rated violence. Definitely R.

If there were any debates that Jet or Jackie was the next Bruce Lee. Then you gotta give Jaa his props. He pays an homage to Jackie Chan’s drunken master and crushes Chan’s performance. One scene that impressed me was his Kung Fu Fist and Muy Thai fist vs 2 opponents. He switches styles back and forth throughout the fight.

Other elements, the music score is really fitting. Head banging right along with the action. Even the Koon dance, that I thought would be a drag, they scored it just right and was great to see. Cinematography, thankfully, the camera pulls back and doesn’t chop up the acting or the fighting.

Proper martial arts film – it’s the hard, raw, kick ass ma film we have been waiting for since the days of Bruce Lee.

Kioko’s Rating: 11/10

Posted in Reviews, Thai | Tagged , , , , , |

Women in Cages DVD/Blu-ray Collection: Big Doll House, Women in Cages, The Big Bird (Shout!)

Posted on May 9, 2011 by JJ Bona
Women in Cages DVD Collection: Big Doll House, Women in Cages, The Big Bird (Shout!)

Women in Cages DVD Collection: Big Doll House, Women in Cages, The Big Bird (Shout!)

RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2011 (DVD); August 23, 2011 (Blu-ray)

A collection of exploitation, chicks and chains! The Big Bird Cage (view trailer): Guerrillas and girls, revolution and sex all combine in an over-the-top jail-break flick. Big Doll House (view trailer): Six women locked in a brutal and sadistic prison take hostages in a desperate escape attempt. Women In Cages (view trailer): Lust meets betrayal when four women decide to brave the savage jungle to escape and even more savage prison.

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Other Notable Titles |

Born to Fight (2004) Review

Posted on May 7, 2011 by JJ Hatfield
"Born to Fight" German Theatrical Poster

“Born to Fight” German Theatrical Poster

Director: Prachya Pinkaew
Cast: Dan Chupong, Noppol Gomarachun, Suntisuk Phromsiri, Piyapong Pue-On, Somluck Kamsing, Amornthep Waewsaeng, Suebsak Phunsueb, Nantaway Wongwanichsilp, Kessarin Ektawatkul, Rattanaporn Khemtong
Running Time: 91 min.

By JJ Hatfield

This movie was made right after the original Ong Bak. It is essentially the same team minus Tony Jaa replaced with Dan Chupong. The writer and director is Prachya Pinkaew, this being only his second time directing with Ong Bak being the first. It seemed as though he was determined to make an even more dangerous movie which meant the bar was not only raised it had metal spikes,was on fire, spewing poison and about to explode.

The skeleton plot involves a young cop Pe Deaw (Dan Chupong) and his much more seasoned partner, Major Phantakan Riddamong who are involved in part of a huge operation with U.S. forces to capture a major gun smuggling gang run by General Yang. They manage to catch Wong but his partner and mentor is killed in the process. He is deeply depressed. When his younger sister, a Taekwondo student needs permission to go on a volunteer outing involving Thai athletes Deaw agrees but insists on going with her. They travel to a desperately poor village to distribute food, clothing and other needs including toys for the children. I don’t know how they managed to convince Addidas to provide clothes for a few athletes. Come to think of it they did look a little worn… maybe they got them at a used clothing store.

There is plenty of action but inexplicably Pinkaew and Panna decided to make this movie with youthful athletes. Team Addidas is bad enough but I will say right now Pinkaew is a terrible writer and uses cheap victim shots to “push the envelope” If the fight to stunt format had something else be sides it… oh what word can I use… uhm… I’ve got it! If there was a f#cking plot! The viewer never gets to see any kind of depth in the characters. That does not mean the people in the film can’t act. How the hell would we know they never get to do anything but run around doing the Team Addidas crap!

Since the audience is never given any idea of what the characters are like, so that the viewer cares at least a little what happens to them, another hook must be devised. Something to make the audience invest themselves at least until the next cool fight or stunt.

Suddenly shots ring out and helpless villagers scatter and scream as General Yangs soldiers blaze into the village shooting men, women, children, elderly – everybody! They round up the live ones and keep them in one area. Pe Deaw sneaks off at night and goes to investigate what the soldiers are up to gets caught and has to fight. The sequence is fairly long for an action movie but I am not complaining. The action is the thing!

The bad guys seize the village to force the government to release General Yang. They put up cameras around the village so the government can watch them brutalize and murder innocent people including children. The villagers and Team Addidas decide to fight back. What do athletes fight with? Why their athletic specialty of course. Some rugby players, male and female gymnastics. Armed with lots and lots of soccer balls, and some really hard small wicker-rattan balls are used to successfully knock out the enemy or kill them, what ever.

There is action on the balance beam, even and uneven parallel bars, pole vaulting and they do flips a lot. There is also the sister taekwondo ass kicker with a heart of gold. But instead of picking up a frickin gun they do this like the f ing Olympics! It’s obvious stunt work was designed to be bigger and better than Ong Bak. I won’t argue with that however it is sometimes even more dangerous doing fights and flips. The stunt sequences themselves are much longer and highly entertaining and definitely more dangerous! If you have any doubt just watch the out takes.

The viewer does get a bit of action at the beginning of the movie. A shoot out, semi – trucks, one of which goes through a shanty town in an homage (?) to a very similar scene in the original Jackie Chan and Police Story when a car drives right through a poor town of shacks, people diving for cover and quite a few explosions. Panna’s version was of course verging on insane, typical for him, but damned if it wasn’t great to watch! Deaw is shown fighting enough we certainly know Dan Chupong has talent. He needs someone to get him in a decent film!

The soundtrack, often only supplied by weapons being fired and people screaming, is to say the least is annoying and not because it is traditional Thai music. It is not! Probably stock music, rather like scratchy techno – lite. But don’t give up yet. Chupong is a good martial artist and one hell of a brave man for doing some outrageous but thrilling stunts. The stunts in Born to Fight are crazier than I have seen in quite a while… in fact I can only think of a handful. Chupong does not use wires, doubles or cgi. I do enjoy the real thing.

This is a must see for the fighting/stunts! There is more action than exposition but just watch the action. I would have rated this higher but the Pinkaew story was a cheap shot, shoddy and the best he could get to hook the audience is mass slaughter of innocent helpless people? If he were a journalist it would be called “yellow journalism”. I don’t usually recommend this but if you want to FF now and then I wouldn’t blame you.

You really have to see this once for the action!

JJ Hatfield’s Rating: 5/10 (action 8.5/10, story 1/10, fighting/stunts 9/10)

By Raging Gaijin

Hot on the heels of “Ong Bak”, comes “Born to Fight”, the latest Thai film to endanger the lives of courageous stuntmen in that country. You get the sense that the filmmakers behind “Born to Fight” are trying their hardest to out-do “Ong Bak” – and, on some level, they succeed. The action sequences are even longer, the stunts are even more dangerous, and the violence is even more intense. Unfortunately, “Born to Fight” falls short in the crucial areas of story and character development.

As one-note as the story in “Ong Bak” may have been, at least the characters were rather defined; each of them had their own personality. From Ting’s stoic resolve to the scheming Dirty Balls; even if you didn’t like one of the characters at the beginning of the movie, by the end they had you won over (yeah, even the girl with the annoying as hell voice). So the plot was cliché and its anti-drug message overdone; you were still involved in the characters, and, as a result, you too wanted that statue head returned to the village.

With “Born to Fight”, we have a lot of pretty young Thai people who display great athletic ability – but no personality. It’s not that they can’t act; they just never really get the chance too. The action takes the center stage, while plot and character development are left far behind. Thus the filmmakers resort to extreme violence (the mass slaughter of an entire village) in order to make you care about the characters. The audience is coerced into caring because, well, innocent people are being murdered for no apparent reason. It’s a cheap tactic and it’s really what keeps “Born to Fight” from being an instant classic like “Ong Bak”.

That said, the action and stunts are absolutely jaw-dropping. They alone justify at least one viewing. But in the end, this is more like a stunt reel rather than a full-fledged movie; it just feels like a string of footage meant to show what the Thai film industry is capable of when it comes to action. It’s a movie where the characters are defined solely by the sports they play and the villains are easy to spot because they’re the inhuman bastards who shoot parents in front of their children. Obviously, it’s a movie completely without subtlety. Then again, it’s also a movie where people are thrown off moving semi-trucks and blown up by rocket launchers.

I’ve basically spent this entire review more or less detailing why “Born to Fight” isn’t as good as “Ong Bak”, but I’m still giving this movie a good score. Why? Because everything you’ve heard about it is true: the action is out of this world. If you love the kind of life-threatening stunts that Jackie Chan made famous with movies like “Police Story”, then you can’t pass up this movie. The soundtrack and fancy editing is a poor attempt at being “modern” but the style and genre of “Born to Fight” has been around for ages. I for one am grateful to see action flicks get back to their no-wires, no-CGI roots. This is bone breaking action at its finest. There’s admittedly not as much genuine martials arts as “Ong Bak” but the over-the-top violence makes up for it. One noteworthy sequence is the extended steadicam shot that Ozark Savage mentions in his review. I don’t think I’ve seen anything like it since the heyday of John Woo; it’s almost like something out of a video game. It’s a short moment smack dab in the middle of a long chunk of action but it’s memorable and unique in its own way.

Action movies don’t have be give-and-take between story and violence, but this one certainly is. It’s a shame there isn’t more to “Born to Fight” than brilliant stuntwork, but it entertains nonetheless. If you’re enjoying this resurgence of ‘old school’ action and stunts set forth by “Ong Bak”, then don’t miss “Born to Fight”.

Raging Gaijin’s Rating: 7.5/10

By Ozark Savage

In an interview with the Bangkok post in mid-2004 Panna Rittikrai said that he wanted to push the limits of the human body to see where the boundary was. Well it may seem like he has just started this but he has been working on it for the past 2 decades and over 50 films – all of these movies being low-budget, largely unseen B-flicks. In Thailand his movies are famous for the over the top, almost suicidal stunt choreography. Then in 2003 came Ong Bak without Panna’s stuntwork or training Tony Jaa may not be the breakthrough star he is right now.

So where to go after being involved in a movie which is almost redefining a genre and giving Muay Thai the respect it deserves? Well why not remake one of your old movies with a bigger budget. Born to Fight is birthed.

The plot is nothing new. Cop Pe Deaw and partner/mentor are undercover trying to take down General Wong, just your average scumbag drug lord. The opening runs like a preview of things to come with a chase sequence involving two semis, Pe Deaw on top of said semis and a few bad guys being shot or thrown off the semis. Culminating with Pe Deaw’s mentor dying and the capture of the General. Thus tormented by the death of his friend he sits at home brooding when his sister, a taekwondo star, suggests he come with her on her trip to a remote village to deliver sporting goods. She is part of a group of athletes from The Thailand Sport Authority doing charity work. The group includes a soccer coach, a soccer player, a gymnast and a rugby player. They get to the village just as a group of terrorists violently attack and take them all hostage along with the villagers. They are holding them in an effort to get General Wong released. Facing almost certain death the athletes and villagers fight back.

Interesting fact is that instead of getting actors and training them to fight, Panna went and hired real athletes. Even better is the fact that these athletes aren’t that terrible at acting, what there is of a script they work well. Unlike Ong Bak where the pacing is pretty steady throughout, the build up to the climax can drag but it is well worth the wait.

What you get for your patience is over thirty minutes of the most insane, crazy and absolutely brilliant action you could ask for. Panna’s movie making has definitely been affected, for example, the single take steadicam shot of Pe Deaw gunning down bad guys ala John Woo’s Hard Boiled hospital shot.

This is one of the few action movies where when the action ended I just wanted more of it. And by more of it I mean, give Panna a bigger budget but please don’t let Hollywood know about him… Look what they already did to Asian cinema stars and film-makers. Just don’t let it happen to Panna.

Ozark Savage’s Rating: 7.5/10

By Mighty Peking Man

“Born To Fight” starts out very serious: Bloody gun play, villagers being wiped out massacre style, and weeping children seeing their parents killed before their eyes.

Then, before you know it, we have a series of pretty Thai athletes sporting Adidas tracksuits, taking on a bunch of fully armed soldiers using gymnastics, soccer balls, and acrobatic martial arts moves that just don’t look like they’re causing impact. Sure, let’s flip a couple of times in the air, spread out our legs, then lightly kick someone in the jaw and watch them fly 10 feet away. All in slow motion. Whatever.

Yes, the stunts, acrobatics and fight sequences are pretty impressive but in a Universal Studios Tour/Gymnastics competition sort of way.

I hate to be one of those guys who keeps on saying “Hong Kong did it better in the 1980s,” but I have to be honest, they DID do it better. Don’t let this new phase of crisp sound effects, constant slow motion shots, and multiple cameras fool you into thinking you’re seeing something groundbreaking than something like “Police Story” or “Dragon Lord,” because it’s no; And I speak not only for this film, but for Prachya Pinkaew’s last film, “Ong Bak,” as well. At least the latter had ongoing fight sequences that were entertaining.

If you’re a gymnastics fan or like to see people being knocked off towers with soccer balls, then this flick is for you. Otherwise, “Born To Fight” is overrated and ridiculous.

I’m not sure how many bones were broke during production, whatever the number was, it was NOT worth this film. Prachya Pinkaew, take a hike; And take your shitty techno soundtrack with you.

Hong Kong still owns you, buddy.

Mighty Peking Man’s Rating: 4/10

Posted in Reviews, Thai | Tagged , , , |

The Clone Returns Home DVD (Animeigo)

Posted on May 4, 2011 by JJ Bona
The Clone Returns Home DVD (Animeigo)

The Clone Returns Home DVD (Animeigo)

RELEASE DATE: July 26, 2011

An astronaut dies on a mission, but never fear — he’s got a clone, which has been imprinted with his memories. Unfortunately, the clone malfunctions, and fixates on a tragic memory from the dead astronaut’s youth. The clone runs away to find answers and solace from his burdensome memories, much to the dismay of his wife and the clone company. Directed by Kanji Nakajima and starring Mitsuhiro Oikawa, Eri Ishida and Hiromi Nagasaku.

Check out the trailer here.

Posted in Asian Titles, DVD/Blu-ray New Releases |

kenhisu: To Kill with One Blow DVD (ASC Productions)

Posted on May 4, 2011 by JJ Bona
kenhisu: To Kill with One Blow DVD (ASC Productions)

kenhisu: To Kill with One Blow DVD (ASC Productions)

RELEASE DATE: May 4, 2011

Directed by LaMard J Wingster and starring Amy Chang. kenhisu: To Kill with One Blow is an ultra low budget martial arts film about a Ninja Assassin who avenges her family against the Mob. This movie may be decent, or it may be god awful; but I guarantee you it’s better than “Battle: Los Angeles.”

Check out the trailer here.

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Martial Arts Titles |

Sands of the Kalahari Blu-ray/DVD (Olive Films)

Posted on May 3, 2011 by JJ Bona
Sands of the Kalahari Blu-ray/DVD (Olive Films)

Sands of the Kalahari Blu-ray/DVD (Olive Films)

Release Date: August 2, 2011.

Sands of the Kalahari is a 1965 film British adventure/drama about a disparate and desperate group of plane crash survivors thrust into a savage environment in Africa. Starring Stuart Whitman, Stanley Baker, Susannah York, and Theodore Bikel, based on the novel by William Mulvihill. Directed by Cy Endfield, who directed Universal Soldier (1971).

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Other Notable Titles |

Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior (2003) Review

Posted on May 3, 2011 by JJ Bona
"Ong-Bak" International Teaser Poster

“Ong-Bak” International Teaser Poster

AKA: Daredevil
Director: Prachya Pinkaew
Cast: Tony Jaa, Petchtai Wongkamlao, Pumwaree Yodkamol, Chattapong Pantana-Angkul, Pumwaree Yodkamol, Suchao Pongwilai, Wannakit Sirioput, Chumphorn Thepphithak, Rungrawee Barijindakul, Cheathavuth Watcharakhun, Dan Chupong, Panna Rittikrai
Running Time: 105 min.

Jesse’s Review

I’m going to start this review out by saying that I might seem a bit biased when discussing this movie because I am a huge Jackie Chan fan, and have seen many of his old Hong Kong films from the 70’s and 80’s (which were his best ones also).

Ting, played by Tony Jaa, escapes from his village and goes to the big city in order to find and bring back the head of the “Ong Bak” statue which was stolen from his hometown. That’s about all the story there is. Ting does meet up with another person who used to belong to his village and the former villager’s partner-in-crime/con artist pal, but their main use in the film is to provide comic relief when necessary.

The movie does start out a big slow and does drag in certain places, but the fight scenes are so incredible that it’s easy to forgive those flaws for the most part. What really took me out of the film was my constant flashbacks of Jackie Chan’s 1986 Indiana Jones meets kung fu flick, Armour of God, especially during the last 30 minutes or so of the film.

In both Ong Bak and Armour of God, the main characters are on a mission to capture an important relic that will bring some joy to them if found, with the rewards being either money or honor. Both films also deal with kidnappings and both end in similiar looking locations, so you can clearly see that Ong Bak did take a note from Armour of God and various other Chan flicks, in its use of slapstick humor mixed with acrobatic action.

Though I was entertained by those elements in both Ong Bak and Chan’s films, the full amount of enjoyment I could have experienced during the movie was taken away a bit from a persistent feeling of deja vu. Also with the double-takes/replays and such used throughout the film: it almost felt like I was watching a martial arts version of Wrestling where Tony Jaa would come crashing down on a villain in slo-mo and the audience would go wild every time he did something like that, even if it wasn’t always necessarily memorable.

I shouldn’t be too negative though, because I did in fact have a fun time while watching Ong Bak for a couple of reasons. While I couldn’t help but compare the film to JC’s older HK flicks, one of the main differences between Ong Bak and those films is that Tony Jaa does get down and dirty very often, and isn’t one to f*ck around. My favorite scene in the film was a 15-20 minute sequence with Jaa’s character going up against different opponents in an underground fight club, with him beating them all pretty senselessly. Jaa is a wonder to watch while in action. He’s super fast, extremely tough, and never backs down while in a brawl. And like I mentioned previously, the movie is a lot of fun and doesn’t really take itself too seriously. The humor doesn’t always work, but it never gets boring.

So I’ll end this review by saying that if you’re a guy like me who has seen a good deal of martial arts/Jackie Chan flicks, then you’ll have a nice time watching this film but you might not see God or anything like that by the time everything is over. But if you’re a newcomer in the kung fu/martial arts scene and haven’t popped your cherry yet when it comes to that kind of stuff, you’ll really enjoy this flick.

Jesse’s Rating: 7.5/10

By Mairosu

History shows us that usually, when a country decides that they want to boost their cinematic output and stir crowd appeal, the filmmakers usually turn to historic or traditional motives. Western movies were the first succesful genre in Hollywood, and the world war two and prohibition era mobster epics also had their run on the big screen. The Chinese glorified their mythical heroes and their martial arts skills such as kung-fu and such. The Japanese turned to the tradition of samurai and the honour of the yakuza, the Yugoslavs rebuilt their film industry thanks to the huge popularity of “partizan” film (world war two stories about guerilla liberation movement), and the Italians exploited their great history of zombies, demons and the living dead.

Okay, scratch that last bit. But what I’m getting to is, Thailand has always been an also-ran in the Asian cinema. While China, Hong Kong, Japan and recently Korea grabbed the headlines, Thai filmmakers produced a couple of long historical epics such as Suriyothai which garnered critical, but then again not much commercial appeal out here west. So, unable to flog us their historical heritage, the crafty people of Thailand decided to give another authentical Thai thing a celluloid work-out.

The deadly martial art of Muay-Thai.

And may lightning strike me (or at least someone responsible for Asian film distribution western of Istanbul) if they don’t cash in on this one, because Ong-Bak, the debut full-length feature of the director Prachya Pinkaew, is, mark my words here , definitely the next big thing in the turbulent world of the martial arts action cinema.

Ong-Bak, casually billed as The Daredevil (not to be confused with Frank Miller’s comic book creation) and Muay Thai Warrior during its rare festival entries, is a story of a young Buddhist monk trainee who embarks on a conquest to retrieve the stolen head of the Buddha idol from his village. The story, as you can somewhat feel, does not evolve or develop one inch away from the sentence above, but as soon as the knees and elbows start flying, you pretty much forget that there was a plot in the first place. What happens when our hero called Ai Ting (played by stuntman extraordinaire Phanom Yeerum) enters the city of Bangkok can be described by only two words : jaw-dropping.

To elaborate… Ting’s “contact” in the city is Ai Yod, otherwise known as Ai Fum (or Hum ?) Lae, the country kid who supposedly made it big in the city (he actually gets by by hustling mobsters on bike racing and dealing drugs smalltime). Ai Yod, played by Perttary Wongkamlao, is reluctant to help Ai Ting with his task, but accepts eventually, thinking he can manipulate the whole gig into something monetary for him. Before you know it, Ai Ting is involved into some intense underground fighting matches, an escape sequence through downtown Bangkok which puts any Hollywood film to shame, a sort of homage to Blues Brothers’ hilarious car chase involving Thai three-wheeled taxis called “tuk tuks” (I hope, I’m not good on spoken Thai comprehension) and more high octane action joy. Sure, there’s a subplot involving Ai Yod’s female friend and her sister who is a hopeless junkie… but who cares? We’re here to see the gravity-defying stunts and bone-breaking martial arts, Goddamnit!

And does the action deliver. Yeerum? a real life Muay Thai expert? is the real deal. Earlier, in my review for Kiss of the Dragon, I mentioned Jet Li is the first since Bruce Lee to have that big screen poise and panache, the dominant martial artist in cinema. Well I changed my mind. Scratch Jet Li. The aptly named Phanom (Phanom, Phenom, geddit ?) puts all the ancient kung fu masters to shame with his unique combination of freak athleticism and martial art skill. The first is on show during the aforementioned chase sequence ? I won’t give away much, but there’s some serious circus stuff going on right there, and the latter… well, during most of the film.

Muay Thai is a skill which heavily relies on usage of knees and elbows, and Yeerum is no different – his most devastating attacks involve exactly elbows, and a couple of his trademark “flying elbows” will definitely leave any viewer breathless. Thanks to the great fighting choreography and the amount of skill Yeerum and co. possess, almost every fight scene is a standout, but the second string of fights in the seedy brawling joint and the thrilling climax are the ones to remember. To reinforce the sheer madness of some of Yeerum’s moves, the director implemented a “he-did-WHAT-?!” instant replay which will show you his latest amazing move from another angle. Neat trick, but sometimes overused, and can be annoying as well.

It’s time to shine back at that first paragraph which deals with patriotic cinema tastes. Namely, the movie is superbly tailored to the Thai mass audiences, and it’s not shy to show us that. First, Ai Ting seems to have a thing for beating up on loud-mouthed foreigners. Second, he’s a good Thai country boy, Buddhist and all. Third, the main villain turns out to be a guy who is busy black-marketing big Buddha statues, which is (probably) as horrible a crime as one can imagine. Fourth, the soundtrack is a stirring mix of modern electronic beats and traditional Thai music used in Muay Thai fighting arenas.

Director Pinkaew thus manages to balance the box office appeal in between success in his homeland and make a respectful action movie which has success potential overseas, which was usually not the case with commercial Japanese filmmakers, who were often accused of being “too western” by the domestic critics (take Akira Kurosawa for one).

A word about acting… no one in this crowd will ever get an Oscar nomination, but there are some solid supporting roles to be seen. Wongkamlao is a riot as the charming weasel Ai Yod (his character also winds up with a patriotic twist, see it for yourself), and his friend Muay (the girl I don’t know the name of ) does an OK job as well. Yeerum himself is pretty much a shy, reclusive figure with a mousey voice of sorts, but luckily it’s usually his limbs (and the pointy ends of them) who do the talking in this one. I ought to credit the director and the whole crew here as well, because Ong-Bak absolutely does not look cheap ? it is slick and well produced, and is well up to Hollywood standards when it comes to direction and production values. Also, have I mentioned the film doesn’t use any wires? No? Well, be prepared – all the action and flying in this film is for real, no crappy wires, which, at least in my opinion, tend to ruin a good film.

And for all the praise, the availability of this film is still spotty. Ong-Bak is a cult classic in file sharing circles, but other than that it got no distribution outside of Asia as of yet. You can order the Thai region 3 DVD somewhere online (use Google you lazy sods), but it has no English subs. Then again, not that you need them anyway ? I initially watched this film without any subs, and you can follow the plot pretty clearly without understanding of single word of Thai language. Last news is that Luc Besson, of Nikita and Fifth Element fame, clinched the rights for the European release and that the movie will be premiered in France in April. No words on the US release as of yet, but I hope for the sake of all US cinema fans that the Miramax will stay far and away from this one.

So to round this review up, I’d really love to give this film a grade in the A level, but the sub par (well, make that “non-existent”) story and script will limit it to nine out of ten in our honourable City on Fire rating.

Well nah. Nine and a half. The action is that good. Who needs script, anyway?

Reviewer’s Note : I am absolutely not sure about the names of the actors and if I matched the character and actor names good. The all-round information on the net about this is very vague as of now ? unless you can speak Thai, which I can’t. Sorry for inconvenience. I am sure the main guy IS Phanom Yeerum though.

Mairosu’s Rating: 9.5/10

Posted in Reviews, Thai | Tagged , , , , |

Women In Prison Triple DVD: Chained Heat/Read Heat/Jungle Warriors (Panik House)

Posted on May 3, 2011 by JJ Bona
Women In Prison Triple DVD: Chained Heat/Read Heat/Jungle Warriors (Panik House)

Women In Prison Triple DVD: Chained Heat/Read Heat/Jungle Warriors (Panik House)

RELEASE DATE: July 12, 2011

CHAINED HEAT – Widely regarded as the greatest women-in-prison film of all time, finally comes to DVD in a totally uncut, re-mastered version. This triple-pack of ‘boobs behind bars’ mid-80s exploitation classics will only be in print for a limited time. Starring Linda Blair (The Exorcist). Check out the trailer.

RED HEAT – Linda Blair heads back to prison as American tourist Christine Carlson, a woman wrongly sentenced to three years in a brutal East German penitentiary after being forced to admit to false charges of espionage. Tormented by the evil prisoner Sofia (Sylvia Kristel, Emmanuelle), Christine must fight for her life as her fiancée tries to rescue her from the sadistic hell behind bars. Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen. Check out the trailer.

JUNGLE WARRIORS – A group of gorgeous models flies to a South American country to scout locations for a photo session. When their plane is shot down, the models are imprisoned and subjected to horrible torture and rape by an evil drug lord. In an effort to escape, the girls grab some firepower, take revenge, and try to shoot their way to freedom! Stars Sybil Danning and John Vernon. Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen, includes Trailers for All Three Features, Video Interviews with Sybil Danning and Stella Stevens. Movie is so low budget, I couldn’t find a trailer…

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Other Notable Titles |

Oblivion DVD (Shout!)

Posted on May 3, 2011 by JJ Bona
Oblivion DVD (Shout!)

Oblivion DVD (Shout!)

RELEASE DATE: July 5, 2011

Just in case you can’t wait for Cowboys & Aliens! Set in the year 3031 on a frontier planet light years away from Earth, a bizarre gang of futuristic desperadoes have their sight set on turning the tumbleweed town of Oblivion into their own private playground. Directed by Sam Irvin and starring Richard Joseph Paul, Andrew Divoff, George Takei, Julie Newmar, Musetta Vander, Isaac Hayes amd Meg Foster. One of Ningen’s favorite movies. Check out the trailer.

Posted in DVD/Blu-ray New Releases, Other Notable Titles |

Shinjuku Incident (2008) Review

Posted on May 1, 2011 by Jeff Bona
"Shinjuku Incident" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“Shinjuku Incident” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Derek Yee
Cast: Jackie Chan, Daniel Wu, Masaya Kato, Xu Jing Lei, Fan Bing Bing, Kenya Sawada, Chin Kar Lok, Jack Kao Jie, Yasuaki Kurata, Ringo Chan, Paul Chun Pui, Fung Hiu Si, Hayama Go, Lam Suet, Teddy Lin, Ken Lo, Ken Watanabe, Hiroyuki Nagato, Wai-Fai Wong, Leyla, Marianna Tushkanova
Running Time: 119 min.

By Jeff Bona

I can’t believe I waited this long to watch this movie…

An illegal Chinese immigrant named Steelhead (Jackie Chan) arrives in Tokyo where he seeks not only work, but also his long lost love (Xu Jinglei). He immediately teams up with a group of fellow Chinese immigrants (Daniel Wu, Lam Suet, Chin Kar Lok, Len Lo) and together, they take on odd jobs to survive.

Unsatisfied with the small earnings from their zero-level jobs, the street smart Steelhead and his countrymen decide to earn better income by stealing from merchants and rigging up pachinko machines (Japanese gaming device used for amusement and gambling). It’s during one of their con operations that Jie (Daniel Wu) is seriously beaten after getting caught by the business owner, who happens to be affiliated with the local yakuza.

Determined to avenge Jie, Steelhead confronts the gangsters. In the process he instinctively saves a Yakuza boss named Toshinari Eguchi (Masaya Kato) from being assassinated. Impressed with Steelhead’s determination and brave mentality, Toshinari decides to recruit him for a dangerous, but well-rewarding job.

In return, Toshinari not only helps Steelhead gain legal residency in Japan, but he also gives him his own territories to operate. In very little time, Steelhead gains benefits and power through Toshinari.

However, Steelhead starts to lose control as his softer side gets the best of him. While he looks to a more legitimate future, his countrymen – whom he shared his wealth with – are secretly gaining power themselves by dealing in drugs and other disgraceful activities.

From broke immigrant to rich gangster, Steelhead realizes that he has created an uncontrollable monster that he must stop…

Shinjuku Incident is a drama/crime movie, but by no means is it boring or slow. If you think The Protector (1985), Heart of the Dragon (1985) and Crime Story (1993) were a departure from the typical Jackie Chan movie, then Shinjuku Incident will surely catch you off guard. Unlike those three films, there’s not a single martial arts movement by Jackie Chan; come to think of it, his character doesn’t even know how to fight.

There was a time when Jackie wouldn’t touch a movie like this. He disowned The Protector (1985) for its gritty Dirty Harry-type violence and excessive female nudity. He turned down the role of a Yakuza gangster in Ridley Scott’s Black Rain (1989), fearing it would tarnish his clean-cut image. He openly criticized Kirk Wong for inserting a sleazy sex scene in Crime Story (1993).

In Shinjuku Incident, you get it all: bloody violence (some of the gore caught me off guard), sex scenes (Jackie’s first since All in the Family?) and although Jackie’s character isn’t exactly bad, he does do some awful things to get to the top.

In between The Tuxedos and The Spy Next Doors, Shinjuku Incident proves that Jackie is open for edgier roles. Sure, it carries shades of Chinatown Kid (1977) and Scarface (1983), but let’s face it, every great gangster movie shares the story of a rags-to-riches, power hungry wise guy.

Other than a few far-fetched plot points, Shinjuku Incident is nearly flawless in its overall presentation. The entire supporting cast is excellent (especially Daniel Yu). I haven’t seen a Derek Yee directed-movie since People’s Hero (1987) and C’est la vie, mon chéri (1993) – both magnificent films – but now I’m curious to check out more of his recent work.

Shinjuku Incident is a must see.

Jeff Bona‘s Rating: 9/10

Posted in Chinese, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin (1978) Review

Posted on May 1, 2011 by JJ Hatfield
"Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Chan Chi Hwa
Producer: Lo Wei
Cast: Jackie Chan, Nora Miao Ke Hsiu, Kam Kong, Gam Ching Lan, Lau Nga Ying, Miu Tin, Lee Man Tai, Miu Tak San, Tung Lam, Wong Gwan, Chiu Chun
Running Time: 96 min.

By JJ Hatfield

Although Chan Chi Hwa directed the movie, this is another film Lo Wei credits himself for; however it was all Jacky (as spelled in the Simitar DVD) fighting during a fair portion of the movie. This was shot almost back to back with Dragon Fist. Both films feature many of the same people but in different characters you probably will not recognize, and truthfully it isn’t important in the beginning.

An old fashioned treat comes on before the film even starts. The older movies often showcased the lead stars talents and abilities. At one time these were on many movies with a red or sometimes black screen behind them. This might be Jackie’s coolest – he fights two guys armed with spears, short staff and a bit of hand against weapons. The musical accompaniment is ripped from, or certainly sounds like it – Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

The plot is not especially cerebral but it is different from solely revenge and fight. At the beginning of the movie the viewer is told that the Grand Masters from eight different clans gathered together in a spirit of brotherhood and cooperation to develop the absolute most effective fighting style – “The Eight Steps Of The Snake and Crane.” They had to be clandestine about their work because there were many clans, gangs, and individuals who would want to use the new technique for evil deeds. Suddenly all the Grand Masters disappeared along with the book. No one knew what had happened to the men or the book.

Before long the book is seen being carried by Hsu Yin-Fung (Jackie Chan) Yin-Fung was trained by the Grand Masters and is excellent at fighting and defending himself. He never worries about being on the losing side of a fight, no matter how many opponents.

Soon most of the nearby clans and families were headed into massive fighting in order to get the book. Carrying such a book seems to be not the best of ideas however it does provide for plenty of action in the form of Yin-Fung fighting and in a very different manner than usual for these films. He is cocky and prefers to not injure or kill unless it’s necessary. He stands with his hands at his sides while someone starts to punch him and he is already hitting them. Jackie in his youth was incredibly agile and excelled in using small props as something to flip over!

The acrobatics help to show some creativity in the fight scenes. And then when the guys are no threat Yin-Fung assumes a cool looking position – negating them as a problem making them lose face. Jackie does things in this film he hasn’t shown before or much afterward. More finesse at times but mostly wailing on bad guys, and he does smile in this one, actually he usually has an arrogant smirk on his face. At one point Yin-Fung says, “Having that book does give me a certain charm though.” Indeed.

Yin-Fung also fights women in this movie, although they were not much of a threat.

Jackie never did like to fight women and made it a policy to never have his role fighting women in the future. He always wanted there to be a woman or kid he had to save. No way would he accept someone like Michelle Yeoh to be his opponent. I think he made a mistake and could have extended his genre’s a tad to include women who can fight.

Unfortunately in this film you don’t see great fighting by women much but that’s okay because Jackie is fighting. Nora Miao is a clan leader who can fight, and looks gorgeous.

There is the Wei humor but much of it surrounds a young guy Kam Ching-lan (no she doesn’t look like a guy either) who follows Yin-Fung around.

Yin Fung only knows one thing about the person who knows what happened to the book and Masters. So he engages everyone to see if they have the clue. He manages to piss off most of the people he meets. Even the women. He is so charming to the ladies by saying such things as “women are just like children. Too vague and indecisive.” on his philosophy of not doing business with women.

I think all the one liners are in the dubbed version “But still though”. I prefer bad Chinese dubs to bad English dubs although the subtitles are a bit confusing. The plot is ambitious because after all he is only one man. A specially trained man but still though…

There are more tricks and double crosses than you can count. Some clans work together and then get into a fight and another clan will start to fight all over again.

The dialog mostly consists of the following:

“You need a lesson!”
“You are asking for a lesson!”
“I think you need a lesson!”
“God Damn It! You need a lesson!”
…Oh and “You must be tired of living!”

For those with a low tolerance for Lo Wei humor this movie is a good choice after Dragon Fist. Jackie’s character is a real jerk and brags to all he will beat them and win, and then they attack him and he beats the daylights out of them. With so much going on there is no need for much humor. For those liking that style of humor there is some but best to go with another choice, perhaps Fearless Hyena or Half a Loaf Of Kung Fu. Some people actually enjoy HLKF. But Snake and Crane is a much better movie because of the fighting, minus most of the “humor”.

I have the old, old VHS copy of this film which is 14 minutes longer than the Simitar DVD. There isn’t anything earthshaking cut out mostly a few more punches here or there and exposition between the clans. It doesn’t harm the movie but I wish to hell companies would stop chopping up movies!

The picture quality is better on the Simitar DVD but that isn’t saying much. There are a few scenes that are faded, a scratch or two but not at all bad for an old movie and a cheap release.

The sets are nothing special but there are a few brief shots of a snowy landscape and a gorgeous waterfall which is known to appear in a number of films. There are a couple of very brief scenes which seem almost slo-mo blurred. I had to search and search to find out what I was seeing. Finally I found two specific references to this film having a couple of areas of damaged scenes that were artificially slowed down to “hide” missing frames. This doesn’t happen enough to be any sort of problem but at least you will know you aren’t having a flashback.

Snake and Crane Arts of Shaolin is a solid old school good time.

JJ Hatfield’s Rating: 7/10

By Numskull

A more appropriate title would be “Jackie Chan vs. The Peoples’ Republic of China.” This Lo Wei effort has even more fight scenes than Elizabeth Taylor has had husbands. Jackie is a wandering fighter who claims to possess a secret Shaolin technique instruction manual which everybody wants (and nobody gets). Numerous characters hunt him down and confront him for a chance to win the prized book. The most annoying of them by far is the cross-dressing girl (I jumped for joy when the main villain offed her). The guy who only speaks in two-syllable sentences was pretty funny, and I really liked the way the last Shaolin master said “Buddha bless you” (twice!).

My only gripe about this movie is that much of the combat is very one-sided, with Jackie pretty much beating the crap out of all who oppose him. Fights where the adversaries are more evenly matched, like at the end of Dragon Fist, are much more interesting to me.

Numskull’s Rating: 7/10

By Sifu

This is the first Jackie Chan movie I bought along with Dragon Fist. Many people may disagree with me, but I enjoyed this movie. The opening scene where Jackie shows off his kung fu skills is amazing (How can you complain about it?). In the movie, Jackie’s character basically walks around and fights with everybody while trying to conceal the book. There is nonstop action and some sarcastic humor from Jackie. There are some misleading issues such as the Dragon Spear, but it doesn’t seem to care to me.

The ending is pretty spectacular as well. He first fights three guys each with a spear (single-handedly) and once he beats them up he fights the Black Dragon guy (whatever he’s called) using the snake and crane form. Because it was a Lo Wei production, I had to make my rating a little lower because the movie isn’t up to par with Drunken Master and Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow in size.

Sifu’s Rating: 7/10

By Cody

Contrary to popular opinion I think this movie is pretty bad. This may sound very negative but I really didn’t find any good moments in this film. Here are my reasons for not liking this movie. Hopefully after you read this you will see my point of view.

– The begining sequence in this film is not all that its cracked up to be. All Jackie does is swing a spear around. After a couple minutes I had to fast-foward it because that red room was giving me a headache.

– The dubbing is REAL bad (Where do they get these guys! Some of the voices sound like they belong in a cartoon).

– Jackie screwed up the fighting in this movie, BIG TIME! He barly did any Snake or Crane style in this movie. All he did was slap people and wiggle his hand afterwards. After he did that, that crossdresser wanted to see how he did it. So Jackie lifts up this paper and slaps it and it tears. Then he says this lame speech about how you should never hit to hard, COME ON! The monk who invented that style should start laying off the moonshine (No offense SHAOL!N DRUNK MONK).

– The co stars in the movie are ridiculous. A Bum, a crossdresser, a old man who keeps messing with his iron balls (Sounds kinda like Lo Wei), and whole bunch of other dorks.

– In the beginning they kept talking about a Dragon Spear, But they never showed it or mentioned it in the end. This movie is not good.

Don’t waste your money on it. Unless you LIKED To Kill With Intrigue, then that would make this a master piece.

Cody’s Rating: 3/10 Buddha Bless You!

By Andrew

If I were seling old two-packs of Lo Wei films, I’d do two things right off the bat: First, I would stop sellng all the pathetic two packs out there. Then I would bundle this one with Shaolin Wooden men, and sell them together for about ten bucks. I think they make an interesting combination, because both of them fail where Dragon Lord succeeds. In this film there were too many characters and plot twists, while in Shaolin Wooden Men there weren’t enough surprises.

I really need to watch this one again to figure out what was going on, and to try and make some sense out of it. Acting was of acceptable 1970s quality and the action was about the same. Not a great deal of comedy in this film, but that was forgivable since Jackie spent so much time fighting off all these different gangs. There were so many bad guys that I think one of them escaped in the end. Sequel? Hah it wasn’t that good.

Andrew’s Rating: 6/10

By The Great Hendu

Now this is a movie! This sucker was filled with great fight scenes, excellent choreography, not bad acting and a better than average plot. You can see some of the comedy more evident in Jackie’s later films. I laughed, I cried, I got pumped, I went out and got another movie. P.S. Check out the fight scenes that roll behind the opening credits. COOL!!

The Great Hendu’s Rating: 7/10

Posted in Chinese, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , |

Evil Dead Trap (1988) Review

Posted on April 29, 2011 by JJ Bona
"Evil Dead Trap" Japanese Theatrical Poster

“Evil Dead Trap” Japanese Theatrical Poster

Director: Toshiharu Ikeda
Cast: Miyuki Ono, Aya Katsuragi, Hitomi Kobayashi, Eriko Nakagawa, Masahiko Abe
Running Time: 105 min.

By Woody

Ikeda’s “Evil Dead Trap” is a very entertaining mix of the giallo (slasher) films of Italy’s Dario Argento, that rushing camera trick from Raimi’s “Evil Dead” films, and the “body horror” of David Cronenberg.

Stylistically, this is reminiscent of an Argento film…bright colors, creative murders, a never-still camera, the unseen killer, not to mention a couple of scenes that are obvious homages to Argento’s works (maggots falling from a ceiling swiped from “Suspiria”, a sharp instrument protruding from a victim’s mouth from “Phenomena”) and Tomohiko Kira’s music, which is quite reminiscent (without being a rip-off) of Goblin’s groundbreaking score for “Deep Red”. Sprinkled among the Argentoisms are creatively done “Evil Dead” rushing-camera shots done in black and white. And, without giving anything away, the ending seems to be inspired by Cronenberg’s “The Brood”, with some disgusting body-themed horror.

One of the great things about this film is that it is fast paced. Within five minute you are watching the tape Nami receives in the mail (if you are a fan of eyeballs, skip this movie), and within ten minutes you are at the location, an abandoned army base in the middle of the forest (very atmospheric place). The truly great thing about this film is that they throw so much into it…there is always something happening. Exposition is kept to a minimum, and no more than five minutes after arriving, two characters are having a lengthy sex scene, and, adhering to tradition, one of them is killed shortly after. From there on out, it’s non-stop mayhem, with brutal murders, a mysterious stranger popping up now and again, everyone getting trapped inside the base, sex, some more murders, a nicely done score, all kinds of great camera tricks, and an ending that is way out in left field.

The acting in this film is quite good, especially considering that the majority of the cast are AV stars. Miyuki Ono gives a very good, Sigourney Weaver-like performance, and manages to be believable even when her character is doing unsensible things. The guy who plays the mysterious stranger (can’t find his name) is also really good…very serious. The other cast members are really just fodder for the killer, but, to their credit, they act convincingly enough. Director Ikeda has crafted a great horror flick here…fast-paced, entertaining, and gory. Takashi Ishii must also be given credit here…the future director of the “Gonin” films wrote a great, albeit strange, script for this seminal Japanese horror film.

In conclusion, this one is worth owning. I’ve viewed it multiple times and it never ceases in entertaining me. A must-see for fans of horror films.

Woody’s Rating: 10/10

Posted in All, Japanese, News, Reviews |

The Matrimony Blu-ray/DVD (Tartan)

Posted on April 29, 2011 by JJ Bona
The Matrimony Blu-ray/DVD (Tartan)

The Matrimony Blu-ray/DVD (Tartan)

RELEASE DATE: July 26, 2011

Directed by Teng Hua-Tao (Sky of Love), The Matrimony is a thriller/romance starring Leon Lai (A Hero Never Dies), Rene Liu (Happy Birthday) and Fan Bingbing (A Battle of Wits). Check out the trailer here.

Posted in Asian Titles, DVD/Blu-ray New Releases |
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